The Luthier Community

Thanks, Brian.

The final step is to glue in the center back reinforcing strip

I do this after the bracing because it is easier to fit

And here is everything complete with the brace ends carved and everything sanded


Next it is on to gluing on the back and the box will be closed. Won't be long, now

G

I love the looks of those airplane wing rib - braces!

Well, I have been promising to have this playable by Stringfest, and I am on track

I took some photos of closing the box and such, but they seem kinda redundant, so I will just show where I am at the moment. I have been working steadily between visitors, beer brewing, and all the rest. I finished the bindings yesterday and sanded the box. Today, I shellac sealed the top and did an epoxy fill on the back and sides.






A bit rough here and there, but I will sand it smooth tomorrow and start putting on some finish. With the epoxy on, I see that the back actually has a quilt figure, but the photos don't show it well.

I also inlayed the pegheads for the 2 necks (one with phosphor bronze frets and one with beryllium copper) and drilled the tuner holes.


I will finish the peghead shape and start neck carving in the next couple days. Then finish making the bridge and start putting this together this weekend. Should have it strung up a few days before folks get here.

Thanks for looking,

G

Looks like your on track Grant, looking good!

Thanks, Joe.

Well this morning I sanded the epoxy level and wiped on 2 light coats of shellac. When dry, I gave it a light sanding with 240 grit and then wiped on a thin coat of Liberon.

The quilt in the back now shows fairly well in a photo

I have never before seen quilt in cocobolo, and actually, it gets more intense towards the outer edge. Had I known, I cut over an inch off the outside edges of the back to retain what looked like the better color, I could have moved the pattern out to eliminate the bug holes and had an even more quilted back Well, I have 3 more sets, so....next time.

Anyhow, my plan is to give this 2 coats of Liberon a day to get up to 6 coats and see how it looks. I am doing very thin coats.

G

Looks great! Can't wait to give it a strum or two

Wow
That's all I got.
Chris

I saw that back in person, and knew it was gorgeous (color and "wiggly" grain lines), but didn't see the figure until now. That's gorgeous on steroids.